Evaporator for hot-air registers.



M. v. HAYES. EVAPORATOR POR HOT AIR RBGISTERS l APPLIOATION FILED MAY 2,2, 1903. I

PATENTE-SEPT. 8, 1903.

no. realise.

UNITED STATESV atented September 8, 190.

PATENT OFFICE.l

EVAPORATOR FOR HOT-AIR REGISTERS.

IPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 738,438, dated September 8, 1903.

Application led May 22, 1903. Serial No. 158,228. (No model.)

To a/ZZ whom, 25 may concern:

Be it known that I, MARY VANDERPOOL HAYES, a citizen of the United States, residing at Newark, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Evaporators for Hot-Air Registers, of which the following is a specification.

It is well known that in the use of heaters for buildings, and particularlyin living apartments, the atmosphere becomes very dry, which is objectionable for various well-known reasons. It has been attempted to overcome this difficulty by providing heating-stoves with evaporating pans or cups adapted to contain water which is evaporated by the heat of the stove to maintain a certain degree of moisture in the atmosphere. While these devices accomplished to a certain eX- tent the object for which they were intended, they are not entirely practical for the reason that the evaporating-surface is of too limited an area and for the reason that the water is,

not suiiiciently heated toiproduce the proper degree of evaporation.

The object of my invention is to provide a device which will give the desired degree of evaporation and which may be employed with heating-stoves of different designs, and more particularly one which may be employed with hot-air registers.

In carrying my invention into eifect I employ a cloth of any suitable texture, the ends of which are immersed in water contained in a suitable reservoir and which cloth will remain moist, due to absorption, so long as Water remains in the reservoir. The reservoir and the means for supporting the cloth may be of any suitable form; but I prefer to employ two reservoirs provided, preferably, with means for holding them in an adjusted position relative to each other and to the heater or hot-air register. The supporting-frames for the cloth are also preferably adjustable in height. I also provide a pair of rolls in each reservoir for holding and feeding the cloth from one reservoir to the other, although thel latter feature is not essential.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure l-is a plan view of the preferred form of my device applied to a hot-air regis ter A. Each reservoir is provided with a solid arm b and a tubular arm b2, which are adapt- `ed to telescope with the corresponding arms of the-opposite reservoir, the tubular arms being provided with set-screws for binding said arms together, and thereby securing the reservoirs in the adjusted position.

From the foregoing it Will be understood that the hookshaped arms h of the two reservoirs may be inserted into openings ofy register A at any desired point, and the telescoping arms may be adjusted so as to hold the reservoirs rigidly in position and at the same time prevent their tilting toward each other. Each of the arms b and b2 is provided with a collar having a socket d, adapted to receive the downwardly projecting ends of wire frames D and D', which support the cloth C. These frames, as will be seen, are adjustable in sockets d, so that the cloth may be held at any' desired elevation within limits. The ends of the cloth are passed between two pairs of rollers E and E', each pair being geared together and one roll of each pair being provided with a knob or handle for rotating the same. In order to readily feed the cloth and to hold the same in position without clamping it between the rolls, which would retard absorption, I provide the rolls with a series of projections c, which enter the cloth. Feeding-rolls E are journaled in a pair of slotted plates e2, secured to the inner side of reservoir B' in any suitable manner, the ends of the slots, as shown .in Fig. 2,1imiting the space between the rolls. Y Feedingrolls E in reservoir B are similarly supported in slotted plates e'; but one plate in each reservoir is provided with an additional vertical slot c3 to permit the removal of one roll, if necessary, to facilitate the insertion of the cloth. To prevent the outer roll of each pair Ioo becoming displaced, I provide pivoted springpressed fingers e4, which hold the outer roll in the desired position relative to the inner roll. By reference to the drawings it will be observed that the outer roll of each pair may be readily removed from the reservoir by pressing it backward against the fingers e4 until its shaft is in alinement with the vertical slot es, when the roll may be raised without interference. To return this roll to its position, it is only necessary to insert the ends of the shaft in slots e3 and press the roll downward until the ends of its shaft snaps into positionvin the horizontal slots.

While ordinarily the cloth might remain in a moist condition if of good absorbent material, it may sometimes happen that the evaporation of the water is more rapid at one time than at other times, and it may become neeessary to shift the cloth frequently, so as to present a thoroughly-moistened area to the column vof hot air from the register. It is for this purpose that the feeding arrangement is provided, and it will be seen that as the cloth is fed from one reservoir toward the other a thoroughly-moistened area may be brought in position, while the dry portion will be immersed in the opposite reservoir.

A single roll may be employed in each reservoir and the ends of the cloth wound thereon, so that it may be fed back and forth; but with such an arrangement it would be necessary to immerse the rolls in the water and make necessary a packing for the shafts to prevent leakage. It will also be understood that the frames D and D' may be provided with teeth to hold the cloth and the rolls entirely dispensed with; but with such an arrangement to adjust the cloth it would be necessary to disengage it from the teeth on both frames and readjust both ends, whereas with the feed-rolls the cloth may be moved in either direction by simply rotating one of the rolls.

It is evident that the cloth may be of any desired width relative to the length of the rollsand that in order to regulate the size of the evaporating area relative to that of the register one or more strips of cloth, each narrower than the lengths of the rolls, may be This latter to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is-

1. In a liquid-evaporator, the combination with a reservoir for containing liquid, a pair of feed-rolls journaled in they ends of said reservoir, an absorbent fabric partially im mersed in said liquid and passing between said rolls and means for exposing a portion of said fabric to a current of warm air.

2. In a liquid-evaporator, the combination of a pair of reservoirs for containing liquid, a pair of feed-rolls journaled in the ends of each of said reservoirs, adjusting-rods connecting the adjacent Walls of said reservoirs, supporting-frames projecting above said reservoirs, an absorbent fabric having ils ends immersed in the liquid and passed between said rolls and overand stretched between said frames.

3. In a water-evaporator, the combination of a pair of water-reservoirs, a hot-air register, said reservoirs located at the opposite ends of said register, a pair of feed-rolls in each reservoir, an absorbent fabric having its Yends passed between the pairs of feedrolls and its intermediate portion stretched between said reservoirs and in the current of hot air from the register.

4. In a liquid-evaporator, the combination of a pair of liquid-reservoirs, a hot-air register, hooks on one side of each of said reservoirs, said hooks being inserted in the spaces in the upper part of said register and adjustable rods on the side of each of said reservoirs for spacing the same and an evaporating-cloth stretched between said reservoirs.

This specification signed and witnessed this 20th day of May, 1903.

MARY VANDERPOOL HAYES.

Witnesses:

HOWARD W. HAYES, FREDK. C. FISCHER. 

